Typewriting machine



April 1, 1930.

Filed. June 28. 1926 ff.; J4

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hama Apr. 1, 'w3cI 7 UNITED STATES PATENT. OFI-lcs ALI'BED G. l'. IUBOWBXI, 0l' BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, BSIGNOB TO `'IJ'NIJEBWOOID IIBHEB OOIPJLN'Y, Ol' NEW YORK, N. Y., .A CORPORATION 0I DELAWARE mnwnrrmo mornin application ma :une as. me. semi n. 11am.

This invention relates to typewriting kmachines and is an im rovement on the construction shown and escribed in a Patent No.

` 1,501,671, issued to me on July 15, 1924, and is s especially directed to improvements mplatencontrol 'means whereby envelopes or worksheets when inserted into a machine, may be brought to the printing line at a single sweep o of the platen. l xo Sometimes the inserters are given a quick start, thereby causing the driving pawl to miss the rst ratchet tooth. Sometimes the sheet is advanced farther than desired, due to the ra id motion of the rotatin lever, the 15 inertia of the parts causing the p aten to be over-rotated.

A feature of the present invention 1s to eliminate both of these defects, thereby permitting the insertar to be operated at a maxi- 20 mum s d.

'Anot er feature of the invention is the provision of an extremely ecient inserter of greatly simplified construction, which may be readily attached to a standard Underwood 25 typewriter:

Another feature of this invention relates to I the self-contained and enclosed features of the mechanism forming a complete attachment which may be made' and so d separatel 30 from the typewriting machines, but whic may be quickly applied thereto when laten#A sweeping operations are to be per ormed.

Im rtant features of the invention are foun in simpler and more positive ratchetpawl picku and locking means, more substantial an effective means for controlling the return of the operating handle, and sim# plifed scale or gage markings -to which the parts are set for a predetermined line-space sweep or throw of the platen. A bracket having means whereby the device may be adjusted to t dierent machines is also a feature. I'

In carrying out my invention the structure or otherwise fastened yplaten axle todrive the same. i

is normally held by the spiral spring above may .include a bracket adjustably secured to A se ental gear rack or plate is' spaced in para lel relation with the above mentioned supporting plate and is secured thereto by cross screws passing through the plates and through spacing sleeves and constitutexed A centrally arranged shaft or pin is xedly l supported at its en s by the plates and car- A i -the operating handle and the s ring guide Y wheel, are ratchet and ear whee connected to rotate together.A he ratchet wheel is driven by a spring-pulled pawl carriedon the operating handle while the gear wheel is meshed with a pinion mounted on the A freely mounted rock-plate'is valso su ported on the cross shaft or pin between t e segmental gear plate 4and the operating l handle and carries a pivoted toothed dog, spring-pulled to normally hold its teeth in locking engagement with the 'gear rack to holdtheparts at a npredetermined position by which a desired ,sweep or throwof-tlua platen is achieved. 'Iherock plate may also. a

carryapin against which the operating handle referred to. This pin has an enlarged head which is A.positioned to normally engagel a tail extension onthe ratchet pawl to hold its nose above and outof engagement with the' ratchet teeth. The rock-plate further carries a pointer or linger to permit of the parts being lo'cked accurately at a desired l scale line.

Other features and advantages will harem-- after appear.

In the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 is a plan view showing the invention applied to the platen'frame of a standard typewriterfthe parte of the device bew ing set for a platen movement of eight line spaces.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the device and in the position shown in Figure 1, the platen-operating finger-wheel being removed.

Figure 3 is a vertical sectional elevation, the section being taken about on the line 3--3 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary diagram showing the handle at the limitof its forward throw, the ratchet pawl being interlocked with the teeth of its wheel to positively stop the rotation of the parts.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary detail showing the normal raised position of the ratchet pawl.

Figure 6 is a quick pickup of handle throw.

The usual platen 10 is carried on an axle 11 liournaled in the ends of a platen-frame 12, to which is connected a paper table 13 in the usual manner.

Coacting with the platen to feed envelopes or work-sheets around the platen are feedrolls 14. The platen may be rotated by handwheels 15 carried on the ends of the platen axle, or the usual line-space mechanism may be employed, which includes a line-space wheel 15a fixed to the platen axle and rotatable by a feed pawl 16 pivoted on a slide 17 driven by a line-space lever 18.

The work-sheet may carry a series of similar forms to be typed successively, the distance from the last typed line on one form to the first line to be typed on the next form being constant or uniform. During the typing operation of a form the platen may be line-spaced by the hand-wheels 15 or by the usual line space mechanism operated by the lever 18.

However, when a form has been typed it is necessary to rotate the platen to present the first line of the next succeeding form at the printing line, and it is desirable that the sweep or throw of the platen through this distance shall be quick and accurate, and to accomplish this I provide a bracket 19 supported on the platen-frame 12 and adjustably secured thereto by a screw Q0 passing through a slot 21 into said frame, and a screw 22 threaded through the top plate of the bracket and resting on the top face of said frame, so that by manipulating this latter screw the center of the platen may be vertically adjusted so the device can be used in connection with different machines, as will be seen more clearly below.

similar view showing the the pawl at the start of the The bracket includes a depending outsideflange 23 to which a. supporting plate 24, carrying an arcuate scale plate Q5, is bolted, said scale plate having simple single line markings 26, easy to read, by which the parts may be set to effect a predetermined sweep or throw of the platen.

A segmental gear rack or plate Q7V is arranged in parallel relation with the supporting plate and is secured thereto by cross screws or bolts S28 passing through spacing sleeves 29.

vA centrally arranged shaft or pin 3() is fixed in the plates by riveting and carries an oscillatory operating lever or handle 31 with which is integrally formed a sleeve or hub 3'2 projecting inwardly on the shaft, and keyed to the end thereof is a grooved guidewheel 33 on which a round spiral spring 34 is supported, having one of its ends fast with the guide-wheel and the other end secured as at 35 to the supporting plate 24.

Compactly mounted on the tween the operating handle 31 and guidewheel 33, are ratchet and gear wheels 36 and 37 respectively, which are connected to rotate together.

The ratchet wheel is driven by a pawl 38 having a tail extension 39, and is loosely carried on a screw or pin 40, and a spiral pull spring 41 is attached at one end to an ear 42 on the pawl and to a fixed pin 43 on the operating arm.

The gear wheel 37 is constantly in mesh with a smaller gear 44 secured as by its hub 44a in a suitable manner to the platen axle to drive the same. A rock-plate or stop member 45 is loosely mounted on the cross-shaft 30, between the segmental gear plate 27 and the operating handle, and car'ries a pivoted dog 46 provided with teeth 47 normally held in interlocked relation with teeth of the segmental gear 27 by a spiral pull spring 48, The pivoted dog has a struck-up angular part or finger piece 49 by which it may be swung upwardly to disengage its teeth from the gear rack when the parts are to be set in a new position to change the platen sweep 0r throw.

The rock-plate also may have a struck-up angular part or finger-piece 49 at the top, so that an operator by pressing the two fingerpieces 49 and 49 together may easily manipulate and set the stop-member 45.

The rock-plate also carries a pin 50, against which the operating handle is normally held by the round .spiral spring 34 tensioned around the guide-wheel 33.

This pin 50 is formed with an enlarged head 51 which normally engages the tail 39 of the pawl 38 to hold its nose out of engagement with the ratchet wheel 36. Obviously, when the operating handle begins a forward swing away from the pin 50, the nose of the pawl 38 will be quickly drawn into engagement with the teeth of the ratchet wheel by the tensioned pull-spring 41, thus securing accurate sweeps or throws of the platen. Attached to an inwardly directed extension of the rock-plate is a pointer 52 which sleeve 32, be-

ran es forwardly over the arcuate scale plate 25, y which the parts may be accurately set at a desired point to obtain a desired sweep or throw of the platen.

A stop screw or pin 53 is passed through the segmental gear plate 27 and projects into the path of the rock plate 45, against which it rests when the parts are in the rearward or inoperative position. Vhen employing this invention on some typewriting machines, this screw may be removed and the range of operation of the parts increased.

Particular features are found in the arrangement and design of the adjustable stopmeans for the operating lever. The rockplate or stop-member 45 has the preferred shape of an inverted L, the vertical shank of which is substantially in line with the lever 31 when the latter is in operative position. The horizontal shank of the L-plate ranges backwardly and has a bent-over angular part at the top which conveniently serves as the finger-piece 49Ill and houses the toothed dog 46 with its spring 48. The dog points backwardly and its pivot-point is located rather close to the teeth of the gear-rack 27, but so that the backward throw of the lever 3l will not cause the teeth of the dog 46 to be pushed out of engagement with the gear-rack 27. The horizontal shank of the L-plate ranges backwardly not only to house said pawl 38, as shown, but also to present the stop 50 as an abutment to the rear edge df the lever 31. In this connection it is noted that after removing the stop-screw 53,. the lever 31 is held in extreme rearward inoperative position, the L-sh'aped stop-plate then being allowed to fairly hug around the rear cross-screw 28. Close range between said screw 28 and the lever 31 is obtained and the lever may range all over the gear-rack between the limits of the screws 28.

The horizontal shank of the rock-plate has a lateral extension or tab 54, which carries the pointer 52. The rock-plate 45, the tab 54 and the pointer 52 then form a U-shaped structure (see the top view of Figure l), within which lever 31 and its driving pawl 38 are conveniently lodged. The pointer 52 may be fastened as by screw 55 and flexed so as to extend forwardly into proper visible rela` tion with the scale-plate 25.

The design of the device includes further features. The attachment includes the plates 24 and 27 rigidly spaced from each other to form a framework fit to carry both ends of the shaft or axle 30 of the rotating mechanism. Moreover, the plates are to house the mechanism so as to present a unit which is compact, handy and designed for ready attachment to the platen-carriage. The plate or gear rack 27 forms the smooth outer shield platel of the device. The arcuate scale-plate 25 extends (see Figure 3) from plate 24 towards the outer plate 27, and encases operative .parts of the mechanism while providing a clearance for the operation ofthe lever or handle 31 which is suitably located adjacent the outer plate 27.

Plate 27 when formed as a gear-rack gives opportunity for the provision of the adjustable stop, which itself is extremely simple, compact, and handy, as described above. The hub or sleeve 32 extends from the lever 31 inwardly and under the scale-plate 25 so that the guide-wheel 33 upon said hub is set closely against the plate 24, and the spring 34 may be suitably anchored upon that plate as shown. This spring 34 is accessible, has positive effectiveness, and is easily attached, while extremely compact in arrangement due t-o its being wound around the vguide-wheel 33. The guide-wheel again confines the wheels 3G and 37 to their proper place upon hub 32. It will be noted that the novel provision of the guide-Wheel and the associated spring 34 is furthermore useful in that it renders the returning spring more independent from thelocation of the operating lever, thus affording new possibilities for design. In the present case the spring may be spaced from the lever by said hub 32.

The forward throw of the lever 31 is limited when the pawl 38 thereon abuts the spacing sleeve 29, as shown in Figure 4.

Variations may be resorted to within the scope of the invention, and portions of the improvements may be used without others.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. In a platen-control mechanism, in combination, a platen, a ratchet-wheel, an 0perating handle having aninwardly-directed lhub on which said ratchet-wheel is revolubly mounted, a guide-wheel on the end of said hub, means on the handle for driving the ratchet-wheel, a. spring on said guide-wheel, and rotating connections between the ratchetwheel and the platen.

2. In a platen-control mechanism, in combination, a frame and a platen supported therein, a bracket on said frame and adjustable to change the position of the platen-axis, a ratchet-wheel, an operating handle having an inwardly-directed hub on which the ratchet-wheel is rotatably mounted, a gear-wheel also on said hub and fast to the ratchet-wheel to rotate therewith, a grooved guide-wheel on the end of said hub, a tensioned pullspring arranged on said guide-wheel and having one end fixed thereto, its other end being anchored, and a gear-pinion in mesh with said gear-wheel whereby the platen may be rotated.

3. In a platen-control mechanism, in combination, a frame, a platen supported thereby, a bracket, means for adjustably connecting it to said frame, said means including screws, one of which is passed through the bracket and threaded into the frame, the

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other being threaded through the bracket and z resting on said frame, a segmental gear-rack, a rock-plate, a toothed dog pivoted to the rock-plate, means for urgin the dog into en agement with the gear-rac a spring-contro led o ratin handle having an inwardly-exten ing hu a ratchet-wheel loose on said hub, a pawl on the handle to engage the ratchet-wheel, a in on said rock-plate against which the han le normall rests, said pin having a head with whic the pawl normally en ages to hold it raised from the ratchet-w eel, and rotatin connections between the wheel and the E aten.

4. In atypewritin mac ine, a rotary platen and means for e ecting a redetermined line-spacin movement thereo including an adjustable racket, a plate attached thereto, a gear-rack, a shaft extending fromplate to rack, an operating handle having a s eeve mounted cn said shaft, a ratchet-wheel on said sleeve, a grooved guide-wheel keyed to said sleeve, a spiral spring extending partiall around said wheel in its groove, said hane having a pawl to drive the ratchet-wheel a rock-plate having a pin to normally en age the pawl to hold 1t away from the ratc etwheel, means on said rock-plate and engaging said gear-rack to hold the late in predetermined position, means at tle end of the handle-stroke for forcing the pawl into positive interlocking engagement with the ratchet-wheel, and rotating connections between the ratchet-wheel and the platen. v l

5. In a typewritin machine, a rotary platen and means for e ecting a redetermined line-spacing sweep-movement t ereof including a pivoted handle having a sleeve a ratchet-wheel loose on said sleeve, a paw on said handle to actuate the ratchet-wheel, said pawl havin a tail-piece, means connected to the end o the-sleeve for urging the handle rearward on its pivot, means engaging the tailpiece to hol the pawl in inoperative position, and rotating connections between the ratchet-wheel and the platen.

6. In a platen-control mechanism, in combination with a platen, an adjustable bracket, a segmental gear-plate supported thereby, a shaft extending from one to the other, a rock-plate on said shaft, a pin extending `backwardly therefrom, means on said rockplate and engaging said gear-plate to hold the rock-plate in glredetermined position, a spring-urged `han e having a sleeve-hub mounted on said shaft, interconnected ratchet and gear wheels. loosely mounted on said sleeve, a awl on said handle to actuate the ratchet-w eel, a portion of said pin being in a position to act as a' rest for the handle, anot er portion acting to maintain said pawl in the inoperative osition, and a connection between the gear-w eel and the platen whereby it may be rotated.

l 7. Ina platen-control mechanism, in combination with a laten, an adjustable bracket, an arcuate plate aving scale-markin thereon, a fixed late supported by said racket, a fixed shag between the two, a rock-plate on said shaft means for locking said rockplate to said fixed late, a pointer carried by the rock-plate an ranging over the scaleplate, a spring-urged operatinlg handle having a sleeve mounted on said s aft, rotationmultiplying means interposed between said handle and the platen, part of said last-mentioned means being mounted on the sleeve, and means for positively locking the arts at the end of the forward operative t row of the handle.

8. A platen-control mechanism including a bracket, an operating handle havin an integral tubular hub, interlocked ratc et and gear wheels revoluble on said hub, a grooved guide-wheel keyed to the end thereof, a spiral sprin carried partially around the guidewhee 'and having one end attached thereto, its other end being anchored to urge the handle rearwardly, a segmental gear-plate supported by the bracket, a shaft extending from one to the other on which the handle oscillates, a rock-plate on said shaft, a dog on said rockplate to normally interlock with the gearplate, a stop passing through the gear-plate and into the path of the rock-plate to limit the back movement of the parts, said sto being removable to permit of further bac swing of the parts, means for positivel lockin the parts when the handle is at its fbrward limit of movement, and a rotating connection between the gear-Wheel and the platen to rotate the same. v y

9. In a platen-control mechanism, the conibination with a bracket mountable on the laten-frame and a shaftsu orted b said racket, of a unitary assembiy including a lever having a laterally-extendin hub arranged to be journaled on sai shaft, a ratchet-wheel, having a gear-wheel connected therewith, loosely mounted on said hub, a spring-supJ orting member rigidly mounted on said hu and a driving connection between said lever and said ratchet-wheel.

10. In a platen-control mechanism attachable to the platen-frame of a typewriting machine, the combination with mechanism including a lever having a hub-sleeve to be pivoted for imparting rotation to the platen of said machine, of means for resilieiitly urging said lever' constantly in one direction, said means includin a guide-wheel rigidly provided on said hu and spaced from said lever, and platen-rotating elements arranged betwen said lever and said guide-wheel coaxial therewith.

11. In a platen-control mechanism for a typewriting machine, the combination with mechanism including a lever having a hub-- sleeve pivoted upon an axle for imparting predetermined one-way rotation tot e platen of said machine, of a housing including two side plates to surround said mechanism and to carry said axle, said lever bein located adjacent the one s1de plate, a guide-wheel fixed -5 upon Said hub adJacent the other side plate,

and a sprin upon said guide-wheel to resiliently urge t e ever constantly in one direction, said spring anchored upon said last-mem tioned adjacent side plate. lo 12. In a platen-control mechanism, in comf bination, a platen mounted in a platen-frame, a bracket attachable to the laten-frame, a plate rigidly spaced from said racket, platenrotating elements including an operating le- 15 ver for predetermined one-way rotation of the platen and formed with an inwardly-extendin hub to be pivoted between said bracket an said plate, a guide-wheel rigidly mounted upon the end of said hub, a spring 90 upon said guide-wheel having one end fixed thereto, its other end being anchored, a ratchet-wheel, a ear interlocked with said ratchetwheel, the th rotatably mounted upon the hub to be confined between the operating leg5 ver and the guide-wheel, means on the lever for driving the ratchet-wheel, a gear-pinion in mesh with said gear-wheel whereby the platen ma be rotated, an arcuate scale-plate upon the racket and under which said hub 3o extends and which encases the wheels upon said hub, and a pointer settable along said scale-plate to determine the normal position l of the operatin lever.

ALF ED G. F. KUROWSKI. 

